TNG:TCF- The Offspring
by CharlieGreene
Summary: Data builds a child.
1. Chapter 1

**Charlotte, in the first and last scenes of the episode 'The Offspring'. That episode makes me cry every time ;(**

**I own nothing but Charlotte and a boxed set of TNG. Plz r/r.**

* * *

"Where are you going?"

"Data asked me to come to the lab. You?"

Deanna nodded. "Same as you."

They came to the junction and were met by Wes and Geordie.

"He sent for you too?" asked Geordie in surprise.

"Yes; he was very mysterious."

"Do you have any idea what this is about?" asked Wes.

"No, he hasn't even told me!" Charlotte answered, sounding a little hurt.

Geordie shook his head. "Something happened at that cybernetics conference. Since he's come back he's spent every off duty minute in that lab."

"It's not like Data to be so secretive," commented Deanna.

"And cautious. He's kept the lab locked every minute!" put in Wes, before realising his mistake.

Geordie raised his eyebrows. "Now how would you know that?"

Wes and Charlotte exchanged glances, and the engineer smirked. "Uh huh…"

They reached the door and pressed the button, and the door opened to reveal Data… holding what looked suspiciously like a foot. The group stared.

"Oh…" Data straightened up, caught off-guard. "You are early. One moment, please." He pressed a few buttons on the panel next to him, and the door closed in their faces.

"Was that a…" Wes started, looking wide-eyed at the others.

"Looked like it," answered Charlotte, biting her lip.

After a few moments of tense silence, the doors hissed open again, and Data called, "You may enter now."

"Come on, Data, what is this?" asked Geordie as they all hesitantly stepped in.  
"Yeah, Data. what's going on?" Wes prodded.

"I have invited you here to meet someone." And saying that, Data pressed a few buttons, and a platform lowered itself from the ceiling. He opened the hinged panels on the front, revealing the entire thing. "This is Lal."

The group stared in shock at the capsule, which contained what would've been a naked person if it was flesh and blood.

"Lal," began Data, gesturing to Charlotte. "Say hello to Charlotte Hope."  
"Hello Charlotte Hope." 'Lal's' voice was mechanical but soft, almost womanly. _A girl android?_

Charlotte exchanged an excited smile with Deanna. "Well, um, how do you do, Lal?"

"I am functioning within normal parameters."

"Lal, this is Deanna Troi, Geordie LaForge, and Wesley Crusher." Data pointed to them each in turn.

"Purpose for exterior drapings, Father?" the android inquired.

_Father?_ Wes mouthed in astonishment.

"It is an accepted custom that we wear clothing." Data answered the android.

"Data, it called you father!" Charlotte said, hardly believing her ears.

"Yes, Charlotte." The happiness and pride on his face was something she had never seen before. "Lal is my child."

The news was met by stunned silence. For a long time, no-one said anything, then:

"Does Captain Picard know?"

"I have requested his presence at the earliest-"

The door opened, and all turned towards Captain Picard. He walked in, and his gaze was immediately drawn to the capsule. "Mr Data, what is this?"

_Obviously not_, thought Charlotte, looking over at Deanna's now-worried face. She listened as Data briefed Picard on what they all knew and then went on to explain how Lal came to be.

"Lal has a positronic brain one very similar to my own. I began programming it at the cybernetics conference."

"But nobody's ever been able to do that, Data, at least not since you were programmed," put in Geordie.

"True, but here was a new submicron matrix transfer technology introduced at the conference which I discovered could be used to lay down complex neural net pathways."

"So you did a transfer from your brain into Lal's."

"Exactly, Wesley. I realised for the first time it was possible to continue Doctor Soong's work. My initial transfers produced very encouraging results, so I brought Lal's brain back with me."

Picard turned slightly, looking stern. "Data, I would like to have been consulted."

Data looked confused. "I have not observed anyone else on board consulting you about their procreation, Captain."

"Why didn't you give it a more human look, Data?" Deanna asked.

"I decided to allow my child to choose its own sex and appearance."

Picard shook his head and moved towards the door. "Commander Data, at your convenience, I would like to talk to you in my Ready room. Counsellor?"

Deanna looked around at them and followed Picard out.

Charlotte walked around the capsule, studying Lal. "A child, huh? I hope it chooses a gender soon, cuz I don't want to keep calling it…it."

"We will go to the holodeck this afternoon. Would you like to join us?"

"I'd love to." Charlotte smiled at Data, inwardly wondering whether this 'child' would change anything between them. "It has an interesting name. What does 'Lal' mean?"

"It means beloved in the Hindi language. Do you think I choose well?"

"I think it's perfect."

Wes and Geordie decided to head out. "Well, we'll leave you to it."

Data nodded. "And I must go and talk to Captain Picard."


	2. Chapter 2

Charlotte stared as Lal stumbled down the corridor. "Lal?"

Deanna was following her closely, looking extremely worried. "I don't know what's wrong. She came into my quarters, babbling about an admiral coming to take her away, and she was terrified. Really, properly scared. And then she just left."

Charlotte tried to get Lal's attention, but got no response. Both of them followed the obviously disturbed android as she stumbled along, almost tripping at times, until they reached the lab.

"I think we should call Data."

Deanna nodded and tapped her badge. "Troi to Commander Data. Report to your lab at once."

"Acknowledged, Counsellor," came Captain Picard's voice. "He's on his way. Is there a problem?"

"Yes, Captain." Deanna shared an uneasy look with Charlotte. "Something is terribly wrong with Lal."

After a few minutes, Data appeared; closely followed by Picard and an Admiral, obviously the one Lal had been so afraid of. They entered the Lab, and Deanna explained what had happened.

"It lasted barely a moment. She experienced fear and confusion. And then for no apparent reason she walked out of my quarters. She didn't say another word, she just started walking here and each step became more and more difficult."

"She won't respond to either of us," added Charlotte. "It's like she can't hear us."

Data studied his daughter closely. "Lal is programmed to return to the lab in the event of a malfunction."

"Father…" Lal said urgently, in a voice that was little more than a whisper.

"Yes, Lal; I am here," answered Data, almost tenderly.

Picard looked sober. "A malfunction. Emotional awareness."

Data narrowed his eyes. "It appears to be a symptom of cascade failure. It would require initialisation the base matrix without wiping out the higher functions."

"I agree." The admiral looked at Data. "May I assist?"

"Thank you, Admiral."

The admiral looked around at everyone else. "If you'll excuse us, Commander Data and I have much to do."

Deanna, Charlotte and Picard filed out. The captain patted the girls' shoulders and left, deciding to wait on the Bridge. A few minutes later, Geordie appeared, then Wes. They nodded silently to the girls and stood against the wall.

It seemed like hours before the doors opened again. The admiral walked out slowly and paused before the anxiously-waiting group.

"She won't survive much longer," he said quietly. He seemed to have aged quite a few years in the last couple of hours. "There was nothing anyone could have done. We'd repolarise one pathway and another would collapse. And then another." He raised one hand and looked at it, and his expression was heart-breaking. "His hands were moving faster than I could see, trying to stay ahead of each breakdown. He refused to give up. He was remarkable. It just wasn't meant to be." His voice broke, and he turned away.

Deanna, with tears in her eyes, turned to Geordie, who put a comforting hand on her arm. Charlotte was crying quietly, with Wes trying and failing to comfort her. The admiral headed away, and after a bit the others followed. Only Charlotte remained, leaning against the wall and trying to regain control of herself. It wasn't easy; Lal had been important to her- not as important as she was to Data, but still, she had grown quite fond of her and almost thought of her as her own. And watching Data as he taught the girl was an added bonus; over the weeks, his expression had changed until he was almost beaming with pride every time the young android accomplished something. And now…

The doors opened, and Data walked out. He sighed, and started walked down the corridor towards the Turbo-Lift. Charlotte wiped away the last of her tears and fell into step beside him. Neither said a word, and when they got to the turbo-lift, Charlotte stopped and silently hugged him. He fiercely hugged her back, and then, with a face full of gratitude, stepped into the lift. And Charlotte knew that, despite claiming to have no emotions, it was clear that Lal's death had had an effect on him- more than he would ever admit.


End file.
